Britain's first homegrown electric car is on the way as Nissan’s £420 million investment in battery powered vehicles moves into top gear.

Production of the latest generation Nissan Leaf is now under way at the company’s Sunderland factory – the fourth model to be built there.

With the Government trying to kickstart the uptake of electric vehicles, the arrival of the new Leaf comes at a crucial time.

Not only has it secured a further 2,000 jobs in and around the North- east, it will also boost Nissan’s exports with the Sunderland Leaf being built exclusively for Europe.

The high tech lithium ion batteries which power the car are also being made at the Sunderland plant and will be used in other Nissan and Renault electric vehicles in the future.

The Leaf has been on sale in the UK for the past 18 months but the switch of production to Sunderland sees the arrival of a new model specifically for European tastes.

It also sees Nissan introducing a new pricing structure for its electric car taking the base price down to £15,990 if buyers lease the battery pack. Those opting to buy the batteries with the car will pay from £20,990 and with the Government grant for EVs, the Leaf range will now top out at £25,490.

The new cars have ironed out many of the foibles of the originals – of which just 1,600 have been sold so far.

It is much less fidgety on the road, has more room in the back and the with battery charger now under the bonnet, boot space has been increased to 370 litres.

The battery pack remains slung under the floor which gives a low centre of gravity and the refinements to the electrical system have cut charging times by half to four hours and increased range up to 124 miles from 109.

To sample the new Leaf we went to Oslo in Norway which has become the self-proclaimed capital of electric cars.

Almost 10,000 Leafs have been sold there – nearly 10 per cent of global production – and in Norway the car offers almost cost free motoring after the initial outlay.

There’s no road tax, you get free parking, free use of roadside charging points and congestion free travel by being able to use bus lanes.

In the city, range is not that much of an issue and on our drive around Oslo we set out with 80 miles showing as the distance available from the batteries, travelled 32 miles and ended up with 58 miles worth of power remaining.

Back in Britain, although electric vehicle drivers escape road tax and the London congestion charge, the lack of charging points remains an issue but they are expected to increase rapidly over the next 12 months to more than 10,000 in 2014, up from the current 1,700.

Overnight charging a Leaf at home costs from about £2 and fitting a domestic power hook up for an electric car has recently been made easier with the Government pumping in an extra £37 million to encourage the uptake of emission free motoring.

As part of the new Leaf line up Nissan is now offering the car in three trim levels with the base Visia grade aimed more at fleet operators, coming without sat nav nor a quick charging facility.

Neither does it get the more powerful heater which is a feature of the other new Leafs.

The mid grade Acenta model costs from £23,490 and includes a nav system while the top grade Tekna gets leather upholstery, a 360 degree view manoeuvring camera and a special Bose sound system which is said to use 50 per cent less energy than similar audio packs. Other changes to the Leaf include the introduction of black trim to replace the beige interior of the original and a light under the bonnet charging flap to illuminate the connecting points at night.

The electric parking brake form the original car has been replaced with a foot operated device which, although not to British tastes, removes clutter from the centre console.

As before, a lot of the Leaf’s systems are smartphone integrated allowing charging and heating the cabin to be operated remotely.

There is also a way of logging journey date while a new feature on the nav system displays the most energy efficient route as well as highlighting the vehicle’s range and pinpointing charging sites.

It’s all very futuristic technology and for those who don’t need to travel long distances, the switch to an electric car can add up.